OpenAI asks court to strike Apple evidence in trade secrets case

By Splitfeed EditorialLast updated Sep 26, 2026, 22:40 UTC

On September 25 and 26, 2026, OpenAI filed a motion asking a judge to strike evidence that Apple had submitted in an active trade secrets lawsuit between the two companies. OpenAI's argument, as reported by 9to5Mac and Northeast Times among others, is that Apple introduced new evidence improperly, outside the bounds of what the court had already permitted. Bloomberg Law, which published its piece a day earlier on September 25, framed the broader case as an early and significant example of how AI-related trade secrets disputes are being litigated.

The case matters because trade secrets law as applied to AI systems is still being shaped in real time. Courts have yet to establish settled doctrine around what counts as a protectable trade secret when the underlying technology involves large-scale model training, proprietary datasets, or internal development processes. A ruling on the evidentiary motion alone could set a procedural precedent for how AI companies handle discovery and evidence in similar disputes. The specific trade secrets at the center of the case, and the nature of the evidence Apple is accused of improperly adding, have not been detailed in available reporting, which leaves the substantive merits of each side's position genuinely unclear.

None of the three camps, Pro-AI, Anti-AI, and Middle Ground, have published reactions to this story as of the reporting date. The Pro-AI camp would typically frame a case like this as OpenAI defending legitimate intellectual property interests in a competitive industry. The Anti-AI camp would likely argue that AI companies rely on legally and ethically questionable data practices and that litigation between major players exposes those vulnerabilities. The Middle Ground camp would ordinarily call for clearer regulatory or legislative standards around AI trade secrets rather than leaving the question entirely to ad hoc court decisions.

The most immediate thing to watch is the judge's ruling on OpenAI's motion to strike. If the court allows Apple's evidence to stand, the scope of the case could broaden significantly. If the motion succeeds, it may constrain Apple's arguments at trial and signal how courts are willing to manage evidentiary boundaries in AI-related disputes.